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Cruise Around Britain with Cunard Invergordon Scotland Port of Call

Angela MooreFriday, May 12, 2017

On to the second port of call Invergordon on my cruise around Great Britain, on Cunard's Queen Elizabeth. You will find thatmost cruise liners refer to this port as Inverness which is a distance of 24 miles away. You can find out more about the first few days on this cruise on my previous blog posts, Edinburgh Port of Call and Cruise around Great Britain.

Day 3 InvergordonWe arrived early morning and enjoyed one of the most fascinating and picturesque journeys into a port of the whole cruise. It was early 7am as we looked out from our balcony sailing up the Cromarty Firth, a deep sea inlet of more than 15 miles. We passed very close to oil rigs that have been brought into the protection of the inlet for maintenance. They were fascinating to see, along with beautiful and dramatic scenic views of the shore and beyond. It was a wonderfully sunny June day.

Cromarty Firth dotted with oil rigs

Docking at the port, our balcony on the Queen Elizabeth looked directly out over the town of Invergordon. Already docked was the Fred Olsen cruise ship the Balmoral, the difference in size between the two was quite surprising, the huge Queen Elizabeth dwarfed not only the Balmoral but also the town. Having finished breakfast the ship was greeted in port by a Scottish piper, a lovely touch that would be repeated at all of our stops in Scotland.

We chose to enjoy a relaxing few hours exploring the town of Invergordon rather than the wider area with an organised trip. Upon leaving the ship we were greeted by volunteers of the local tourism team, who handed out guidebooks of Invergordon and details of places to explore further afield. They were extremely welcoming and helpful, as was everyone we met in the town. The weather was glorious, we took exploring Invergordon at our own pace and could not of wished for a more relaxed day.

Also docked at Invergordon The Balmoral a Fred Olsen Cruise Liner

The town of Invergordan viewed from Queen Elizabeth

Highlights of Invergordon

Mural tour around the town

Natal Gardens

Invergorgon Museum and Heritage Centre

Scotsburn Croft the best gift shop in town and possibly Scotland

We wondered around the town exploring some of the amazing and colourful murals, these capture the history of the town. We also enjoyed a fascinating if some what quirky visit to the Invergordon museum.

Possibly the best little gift shop in ScotlandAlong the way we also visited a number of gift shops selling all the predictable souvenir tat you can think of, but then we discovered the Scotsburn Croft shop. Now that is what a gift shop should be. Selling a selection of beautiful gifts including unique bags made using genuine Harris Tweed, ceramics and so much more. My sister treated herself to a gorgeous new handbag the purple one in the photo, and me, well I choose to hesitate and put the cute purse I had picked up down. That was a mistake I never did find another one I liked as much during the rest of my holiday. My mum picked up some of the tartan designed ceramics. We took our time and enjoyed a mid morning cup of tea in their delightful tea room area too.

A delightful gift shop the Scotsburn Croft at Invergordon

A delightful gift shop the Scotsburn Croft at Invergordon

As we explored the town, we discovered a small public garden within the town, The Natal Gardens designed in 2001 to nautical theme and to commemorate the lose of HMS Natal in the harbour in 1915.

Natal Gardens at Invergordon

The town has some beautiful floral planters

The Queen Elizabeth dominated the skyline from the town, it looked a most magnificent sight. We sailed away from Invergorgan to the sound of bagpipes, pipers performed a number of tunes as the crewe of the Queen Elizabeth were busy casting off from the dock. The sail out of the Cromarty Firth later that evening was as enjoyable as our arrival. I have been left with some delightful memories of our stop at Invergordon, helped I am sure by the superb weather.

Coming next on my cruise around Britain...Kirkwall capital of the Orkney Islands.